Ron's Dilemma
by udderpd
Summary: COMPLETE One Shot: Ron thinks he loves Hermione and he is being obstinate. Starring the broom cupboard with full support from Millicent Bullstrode as the ultimate deterrent. Various ships; RW-HG-LB-PP-LL-SB-PP Eventual RW;LL : HP;HG


**Disclaimer:** J. K. Rowling owns the Harry Potter Universe all other claimants to anything to do with the H.P. story are simply hangers on to her glory. I thank her for allowing us mere mortals to play in her world and I promise that while I have Harry in my care nothing bad will happen to him. I will leave that to J.K.R. herself in her books.

**Authors Note,** Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.Just a little rewrite with two hundred odd words added to keep you going over the holiday's. If you enjoy it **Please Review** it.

**RON'S DILEMMA**

It was the Christmas holidays in Ron Weasley's seventh year at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry and he was spending it at the Burrow without his two best friends Hermione (the bookworm) Granger and Harry (the-boy-who-lived-**AGAIN**) Potter.

The pair of them were now very famous, however the more famous of his two best friends Harry Potter was still in 'St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies' where he was in the process of slowly recovering. Harry had been in hospital since he had vanquished Voldemort seven weeks previously and he was due for release in time to catch the Hogwarts Express back to school after the Christmas holidays.

Ron's other best friend Hermione Granger was now at home with her parents recuperating, she had spent six weeks in St Mungo's herself recovering from her part in the duel with the Dark Lord.

On that fateful Halloween night Hermione had slipped away from them all and stood side by side with Harry facing their evil nemesis until she fell to a glancing blow from a vicious blasting hex that she didn't quite manage to dodge completely. Realising that she was only injured and to Voldemort's dismay, it had galvanised Harry into frantic action, casting a series of ever more powerful curses cumulating in him casting **_'Cyfan Cariad'._** This was a spell he had found while searching the library on his own and he found it in an ancient Grimoire that had supposedly belonged to Merlin the greatest wizard ever.

Albus Dumbledore the Headmaster was the only other living soul to have read the spell.

After the event Ron had asked Professor Dumbledore about the spell that had utterly destroyed Tom Riddle and he had been told that the incantation was simply Welsh for 'Whole Love'. But as the Headmaster was very quick to point out, on its own the incantation didn't mean a thing, it was what was going on in your head and your heart when you cast it that gave the spell its power.

Casting it had nearly killed Harry, they said that he had poured almost everything into it and it was his immense capacity for loving others that had not only destroyed Voldemort but also dispatched all his Dementors to the fire pits of Hades, along with him.

The Hogwarts Headmaster had also assured Ron that the demise of the Dementors was one of the surest signs that Voldemort was now completely gone because they were bound to the Dark Lord's essence.

-x-

Ron was alone in the kitchen with his mother who was sitting across from him at the breakfast table and he said, "I think I love her Mum."

Molly Weasley was a loving mother, she thought that she knew the answer but to be sure she asked, "Who Ron?"

"Hermione Mum, I think that I love Hermione."

"Then you have to tell her Ron, because it is no good if it's only one person doing the loving."

"But what if she says no, Mum? What if she doesn't love me?"

"Then it is better for you to know sooner rather than later." Molly said very reasonably.

"How can it possibly be better to know that the girl of your dreams doesn't love you?" he was beginning to get really belligerent.

Molly was more or less certain that Hermione loved Harry. Why else would the lovely young lady follow him to face that ultimate horror willingly and she was also fairly certain that it was Harry's immense love for Hermione that had finally done for the Dark Lord.

Mrs Weasley couldn't tell Ron these thoughts without provoking him even more, so she half changed the subject and asked, "Which girls do you usually talk to, not about school things but just talk to?"

"Well," he thought, "Hermione and," he thought some more, "Ginny," he finished, seeming quite proud of himself.

"That's not a great many to base such an important thing on, don't you think you should go and talk to a few more girls before deciding that you love one of them? But most important of all you must tell Hermione how you feel about her."

"What do I need to talk to more girls for when I know that I love Hermione?"

He could be so pig-headed sometimes but that was where their conversation had ended, because that was when Ginny came into the kitchen from the garden and she had brought her friend Luna Lovegood with her.

So after a mumbled greeting Ron scooted off up to his room as quickly as he could and he stayed there until well after Luna had gone home.

-x-

It was three weeks before Easter and Hermione Granger had a problem. In point of fact she had two problems, but she was fairly certain that if she solved her problem with her best friend Ron the problem with her best, best friend Harry would in all probability rapidly solve itself.

Hermione loved Harry Potter and this fact was blindingly obvious to the entire world except Ron Weasley, she was convinced that even Harry knew it but he wouldn't do anything about it because Ron had told him he thought that he loved her.

This information she had garnered from Ron's sister Ginny who was her best girl friend.

Harry was not recovering as he should from his encounter with Voldemort. The Medi Wizards in St Mungos had told her before she had been discharged that Harry needed to be loved by someone to replace the love drained from him when he vanquished the Dark Lord.

Now she was waiting with all of this love ready to pour into him and if she thought that it would do any good she would rip all her clothes off and make love to Harry at Dinnertime in the Great Hall in the middle of the staff table.

However she knew Harry very, very well, he would simply smile softly and say, 'You know that I can't Hermione, Ron likes you'.

Harry was obstinate this was true but this was fully supported by his being noble, whereas his being a totally uninformed prat was the only thing that lent support to Ron's stubbornness.

Hermione knew that Ron loved her like a sister because she along witheveryone else could see how Ron loved his sister Ginny and her the same way, why couldn't he see that he loved them both exactly the same way. Why? Oh why couldn't the obdurate fool see that he treated them both precisely the same way, unerringly like sisters?

How she had tried, over and over, to get Ron on his own, to maybe take her for a walk around the lake, the pair of them needed to get this thing out in the open and out of the way.

However the only conclusion she could reach was that Ron Weasley was scared.

-x-

Ginny Weasley was getting frustrated and everyone knew that a frustrated Ginny Weasley was not something to be idly trifled with. The source of her rapidly escalating aggravation was the treatment of her adopted brother Harry, by her first class prat of a brother Ron.

After her silly infatuation with 'the-boy-who-lived' had fizzled out, sometime during her third year, she found that there still remained 'Harry', the kindest, sweetest and most helpful friend any girl could ask for. So now they were like brother and sister, certainly she owed him her life but she was confident that she thought about that more often than he did. Blimey at least eighty percent of the people in the wizard world owed Harry their lives in one-way or another, especially since last Halloween.

True to form, Ron was being completely self-centred and totally oblivious to all others. As a result he was slowly killing Harry by being an obstinate nincompoop over Hermione, now she, little Ginny Weasley, had had enough of it.

She had formulated a plan and all of Gryffindor from the fifth year up, excluding Ron and Harry of course, were in on most of it, as well as most of the girls in Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and even some Slytherins. She had spent hours rehearsing the words that she and Hermione had drafted until the time was right and this evening, as of now, she was going to put their master plan into action.

The trio was in its usual position doing homework. Harry was continually sneaking loving glances at Hermione, Hermione was occasionally looking daggers at Ron and Ron was trying to look anywhere in the room except at Hermione.

"Ronald Bilius Weasley! You will kiss Hermione Jane Granger now!" Ginny was standing with her wand pointing directly between Ron's eyes, needless to say he looked, quite justifiably, terrified.

Harry jumped up, dashed across the common room and dived out of the portrait hole, as the last thing in the world he wanted to witness was Ron kissing Hermione.

This was not a surprise, it was their anticipated reaction by Harry to Ginny's opening move, so when he had left Ron's sister continued. "You may kiss Hermione here or in the first broom cupboard on the left of the hall it has been reserved, indefinitely, for your use, you may please yourself as to the location."

Hermione stood and eventually managed to pull Ron to his feet but he didn't want to budge so she kissed him in front of everyone.

Ron pushed her away almost immediately, "Yuk!" he said sounding disgusted, "that was just like kissing Ginny."

"Yes," Hermione replied, "and you're like kissing my dad. Do you under…."

Ginny interrupted, "I will explain the finer points to the thick prat." She stuffed the invisibility cloak and the Marauders Map into Hermione's hands and continued, "You go and find Harry and make it clear to him what happened here."

Hermione flew out of the portrait hole after Harry.

Once again Ginny had her wand pointing between Ron's eyes and she said, "Right you, we, all, everyone, probably even slime ball Snape know that Harry and Hermione are desperately in love and Harry needs that love to keep him alive.

So what was the brilliant thing that my self-indulgent stupid berk of a brother did about it? He went and told the Wizard World's most considerate super hero that based on absolutely no evidence whatsoever he thought that he was in love with the only girl that could keep said hero alive.

Andnow, despite your penchant for self-indulgent moping, you are going to do what our mother told you to do at Christmas. I have quite a long list of agreeable young ladies and you are going on a lot of dates in the vain hope that you will find one that suits your requirements. Your search will be starting now, Lavender, you first please."

Lavender Brown sashayed across the common room smiling at Ron, she was looking like the cat who had the key to the cream factory and said, "Ron I will make you a promise, you won't find kissing me anything at all like kissing Ginny." Ron was trembling and again was looking terrified but for a totally different reason, however Lavender completely ignored this and just carried straight on, "Now are we going to put that broom cupboard to good use or shall I sit on your lap and we can do everything here?"

Lavender had put a definite emphasis on the word 'everything'.

When Ron and Lavender had left through the portrait hole all of the remaining fifth, sixth and seventh year students crowded over and congratulated Ginny on the execution of her plan.

Parvati said, "I still think that I should have been first, Lavender is going to eat him alive." Everyone burst out laughing.

-x-

The Interlude of 'Ron and Lavender'.

**A short time later.**

**In a broom cupboard not very far away.**

"La…."

"Slurp!"

"Lav…."

"Shut up, slurp."

"Are you supposed to do that with your tongue?"

Much longer, "Slurp."

A short while later.

"What's this?"

"Shut up and squeeze it gently."

A long time later.

"My mum warned me about girls like you."

"Oh, what did she say?"

"I can't remember."

"Good."

"Lav! What are you doing?"

"Don't you like it?"

"Mmmm."

For the sake of decency we must now leave the aforementioned broom cupboard.

(I for one was verydisappointed that it was dark in there and we couldn't see what was going on.)

-x-

The Interlude of 'Hermione and Harry'.

**(We take up the story when Hermione flew out of the portrait hole after Harry.)**

Hermione stopped running a short way up the corridor, I must not panic, she calmly told herself as she folded the invisibility cloak as small as she could and stuffed it into one of the larger pockets of her robes it wasn't after hours so she didn't need it yet. Next she activated the Marauders Map and she soon found Harry, he was heading for his favourite Aspen near the lake, having cleared the map she folded it and put it away in another pocket.

This proved to be a very fortuitous action, as she hurried round the corner at the end of the corridor she bumped into Professor Snape, "Where are you going in such a hurry Miss Granger?"

Bad luck, good luck, before she could answer Professor McGonagall appeared, "What appears to be the problem here?" she asked.

Hermione risked everything and spoke directly to the Deputy Headmistress, "We have activated a plan to save Harry and I am going to him now, his sister and the others are currently dealing with Ron Weasley."

"Severus," Professor McGonagall said, "I would request that you keep away from this corridor until further notice."

To Hermione's amazement Professor Snape gave a half bow and said, "Certainly Minnie, ten points to Gryffindor," then he turned and walked away.

With a big smile Professor McGonagall said, "Off you go, you can tell me about the plan some other time, hurry now."

It took only a few minutes for her to reach Harry who was sitting under his favourite tree and as she sat beside him she said, "I love you Harry."

His eyes lit up but he said cautiously, "What about Ron?"

"He decided that I was like kissing Ginny and in the end it took him all of two seconds," she said her eyes shining.

"I love you too Her…." She was kissing him and he was on his way to paradise, it was fantastic Hermione (she's in the library) Granger was kissing him. "Fool." Harry finished when she broke for air.

Hermione looked upset, "Whom?" she asked tears welling in her eyes and sounding choked.

"Ron!" He said then she knew no more for what seemed like hours, he was kissing her so the World could go and do the other, she was in heaven and figuring on staying there permanently.

Later she asked, "Should we take a walk around the lake?"

"Why?" he answered, "We've done it before and it's a waste of kissing time."

"Good point," she said and kissed him again, who was she to argue with brilliant logic like that.

A lot of kissing later he said, "Thank you for coming with me, the world owe's you, you know."

"Don't be silly, it's you they owe," she answered.

"No, I knew that you were injured and that spurred me on to get rid of him quickly, so I could get you to hospital."

"Ok it owe's both of us then," he nodded his agreement and after quite a while they made their way back up to the Gryffindor common room.

-x-

Ginny was alone in the common room much later that evening, when Hermione and Harry came tumbling back into the common room through the portrait hole. Why they had been wearing the Invisibility Cloak she couldn't fathom, they were giggling that much anyone within fifty yards would have heard them.

"You two look like you are doing alright?" Ginny had a big smile and she thought that Harry looked ten times better than he had earlier in the day.

The Head boy and Head Girl who were very obviously now a couple came and sat next to her on the sofa and they didn't seem to be able to get close enough to each other.

Harry replied happily, "We're great."

Hermione asked, "So where's Ron?"

"Well," Ginny grinned, "he left with Lavender about five or ten minutes after you took off behind Harry and they haven't been heard from since. But talk of the devil."

There was a scuffling and scrambling from the portrait hole and Ron came in, he was being supported by Lavender, when they reached the boy's stairs she released him and he started climbing them on his hands and knees.

Lavender came and sat across from them looking like she had definitely dined on her favourite morsel and said, "I think that Ron has just had an epiphany, some Lavender style divine enlightenment."

"What on earth did you do to him?" Harry asked not able to suppress his chuckles.

"Well, I taught him some things on the subject of what girls are about and what they like," she said with a smile. "I didn't take his virginity, I don't do that on a first date, but I did pretty much everything else you can think of and probably quite a few things you have never even dreamt about. Yes everything else, I don't think that I missed a thing."

"So tomorrow," Ginny was smiling like a tiger, "it's Padma's turn and then Luna followed by, Susan Bones, Parvati then Luna again. It's Pansy Parkinson's turn after Luna and if he lives that long the next is Eloise Midgen with Luna…."

"Hey some questions," broke in Hermione, "I haven't seen this list before. How come Pansy Parkinson is in there at all and why does Luna keep cropping up?"

"Well Pansy and some of her Slytherin girlfriends overheard the Patil twins and I talking about all this," Ginny told them, "and she said that she had a bit of a thing about red hair and she asked could she have a turn. From the look on her face when she asked for a turn, if he still has his virginity when he goes out with her it won't be there when he comes home. If only he knew. Poor thing."

All of them were laughing and Ginny continued, "Unlike all of the others Luna absolutely adores Ron and she has done for years, she's very pretty when she bothers, she's a great cook and she loves Quidditch, on the face of it a good match for him. Also Luna's sessions will coincide with his Quidditch practices and matches but she won't just let him go she will encourage him to play, go to watch and she will probably get us all to sing 'Weasley is our King,' as well.

The next two will be Daphne Greengrass and Millicent Bullstrode, Pansy said that they would find it a great hoot so by this time Luna will probably be looking ever so normal to him. Oh and tomorrow morning I will tell him that he can stop my interfering with his life as soon as he decides on a steady girlfriend. I will be sure to slip in a reminder between Susan and Luna maybe with just a hint that it will be Pansy and Eloise as the next two. What do you think?"

"Isn't Millicent Bullstrode the big one?" Lavender asked, looking fearful.

"Only if you consider six foot eight and three hundred pounds without any surplus fat, big, yes." Harry answered, "Will your mother ever forgive you if Millicent Bullstrode kills him?"

Ginny giggled and told the other three, "The whole basis of this plan was originally my Mum's idea at Christmas. But, 'Lock the Twerp in a broom cupboard and keep sending in different girls until he picks one,' is what our Mum actually said." The four of them were now giggling and Ginny continued, "I didn't think it would work in its original form so we developed it into this plan and our Mum has approved it."

After a bit of discussion the others all decided that Ginny's plan was as good as they were going to get.

Then because it was getting very late the four of them went to bed.

-x-

The next morning the Head Boy, the Head Girl and the sixth year Gryffindor girls Prefect were summoned to the Headmaster's study before breakfast, besides the Headmaster Professors McGonagall and Snape were there.

"Will you tell us all about this plan please?" Professor Dumbledore asked and he could see that Harry was as interested as anyone as the girls expounded more and more details of their convoluted plan.

The three Professors told them that they would do what they could to help, after that the only unusual thing was Professor Snape going away chuckling about Millicent Bullstrode the ultimate deterrent.

-x-

The last five days had been hell and Ron was on his second date with Luna, Gryffindor had won their Quidditch match against Hufflepuff this morning and Luna had come onto the pitch and given him a big kiss in front of everyone and he enjoyed it.

Now he was considering the last five days in the light of the warning reissued by his sister this morning, Pansy Parkinson tomorrow with Millicent Bullstrode on the horizon he needed to make a decision and fast.

Maybe it was his own fault because of the Yule Ball in forth year, but Padma had been hell bent on continuing the destructive process started by Lavender the night before and he had been late for Divination on Wednesday morning. Thank goodness it had only been Professor Trelawney, but she didn't seem to take any notice of him anyway, even when he fell asleep in the middle of class.

Wednesday evening had been quite good, Luna had walked hand in hand with him to the Quidditch practice then she had cheered everything he did all through the session. After he had showered they had walked around the lake just talking while holding hands, they had reached the Ravenclaw common room just before ten and she allowed him to kiss her goodnight, it was all quite pleasant.

What was the Matter with all these other girls? He had for some strange reason always thought that Susan Bones was a nice girl but she had left him for dead in the broom cupboard, he thought that it had been about eleven thirty on Thursday, anyway he was pretty sure it was Thursday. Neville and Harry had carried him back to the Gryffindor tower, they told him it had been one thirty in the morning when they had collected him from the broom cupboard and taken him to his bed. However they had told him this when they woke him up at the end of History of Magic, how did he get there, he didn't even remember waking to go to the class?

Now he was certain that Parvati was an animal, a completely wild _'Snogosorus'_, thank Merlin he had been rescued but even that had been the weirdest thing ever. Someone had banged on the broom cupboard door and said something like, _'Miss Patil you must make sure that Mr Weasley is in his bed by ten, he has a Quidditch match tomorrow'_. In itself that was perfectly reasonable, his sister, 'the fire dragon',was on the team and she would make sure he was totally awake for the match. Except the voice had sounded like Professor McGonagall, surely she wasn't in this as well? Don't start thinking like that in that direction lay paranoia and that was only one-step from insanity

Now their walk had carried Luna and him nearly half way around the lake so they were approaching a little spinney and he had come to a decision. So he invited her to sit-down for a while she readily agreed and before he lost his nerve he asked, "Luna, would you like to be my girl?"

Luna was delighted but she didn't let it show instead she mused, "Well there would have to be some minor changes in what we do. You would have to kiss me a bit more often and I wouldn't mind some of that touchy feely stuff the girls keep telling me about, I have never tried it myself but by the sound of it I think that I might enjoy it. If those changes are alright with you then yes I would very much like to be your girl Ronald."

So Ronald kissed Luna.

FIN 


End file.
